Mymensingh, October 1: A month-long road safety awareness campaign has been launched in Mymensingh by the Mymensingh chapter of Nirapad Sarak Chai (NISCHA) ahead of National Road Safety Day, observed on October 22.
The campaign is being organised under this year’s theme, “Safe Roads, Prosperous Country, Bangladesh First.” The programme began at around 10:30am on Thursday at Kanchijhuli intersection in the city.
At the launch of the campaign, NISCHA volunteers provided necessary guidance to vehicle drivers on safe road use and assisted pedestrians in crossing the road safely. The campaign aims to promote road discipline, compliance with traffic laws, responsible behaviour among drivers and pedestrians, and greater public awareness to help prevent road crashes.
NISCHA Mymensingh will conduct a range of awareness programmes across the city throughout October as part of its observance of National Road Safety Day.
A street meeting held at Kanchijhuli intersection was chaired by Abdul Kader Chowdhury Munna, president of NISCHA Mymensingh. A F M Anamul Haque Mamun, general secretary of the organisation, delivered the welcome address.
Among those present were Ekhlas Uddin Khan, adviser to NISCHA Mymensingh and principal of Mymensingh Commerce College, and Swadheen Chowdhury, writer, journalist and vice-president of the organisation, along with senior leaders and members of NISCHA.
Md Abdul Wadud Khokon, Anwar Hossain Chowdhury Kabir, Shah Zahir Uddin Ahmed Kajal, Md Fakhrul Hasan Sayem, Ahmed Mostafa Dalim and Khairul Islam actively participated in the campaign.
At the street meeting, speakers said that ensuring road safety is not the sole responsibility of drivers. It requires the collective and responsible participation of pedestrians, passengers, transport owners, law enforcement agencies and all stakeholders involved in road management.
They stressed the importance of obeying traffic laws, maintaining prescribed speed limits, ensuring that vehicles are operated by trained and legally licensed drivers, keeping vehicles roadworthy and creating a safer environment for pedestrians.
A movement born out of grief
The Nirapad Sarak Chai (NISCHA) movement has a long history as a social campaign for road safety in Bangladesh.
On October 22, 1993, Jahnara Kanchan, wife of film actor Ilias Kanchan, was killed in a tragic road crash. Turning his personal grief into a broader social responsibility, Ilias Kanchan began a movement to raise public awareness and demand safer roads.
The initiative later took an organisational form, and Nirapad Sarak Chai (NISCHA) was formally established on December 1, 1993.
For years, the organisation has conducted processions, rallies, discussions, seminars, driver training programmes and various awareness campaigns to help prevent road crashes and promote safer road use. Its central message has been the call for a Bangladesh free of road crashes.
October 22 declared National Road Safety Day
Following a long-standing demand from NISCHA, the government declared October 22 as National Road Safety Day in 2017. Since then, government agencies, private organisations and civil society groups have observed the day every year through various awareness programmes focusing on road safety.
Why road safety matters
Ensuring road safety requires more than legislation and infrastructure development. Effective enforcement of traffic laws and changes in the behaviour of road users are equally important.
Excessive speed, reckless driving, unroadworthy vehicles, indiscriminate passenger boarding and alighting, and lack of awareness among pedestrians all contribute to increased risks of road crashes.
The month-long campaign launched in Mymensingh on October 1 is part of that continuing social movement. Beginning at Kanchijhuli intersection, the NISCHA Mymensingh campaign seeks to convey a simple but essential message to all road users: ensuring safer roads is a shared responsibility, and everyone must play their part.
